Oh, man, I’m really going to have to rein myself in here.

Everyone’s got something they geek out about. You’ve got your motor heads who will happily spend an afternoon under an engine block, the kids that spend all their time perfecting their killer vintage Italian bicycle, or the dude with the encyclopedic knowledge of X Men comics. Me? I’m kind of ridiculous about kitchen stuff. I lust after fine enameled cast iron, Belgian copper cookware, vintage Griswold cast iron skillets, and handmade carbon steel chef’s knives. I would rather have a set of Ruffioni cookware than a Maserati (both are equally beautiful–and equally impractical).  So I could really go nuts, because I can happily spend an hour talking about why copper bowls really do make a difference when making meringues.

But I started out with some ancient warped Tupperware from my grandma’s basement, a hand mixer that my mom had gotten as a wedding present in 1974, and a couple of spectacularly awful saucepans that I got at Goodwill, along with a couple of knives that probably hadn’t been sharpened since the Truman administration. Along the way, I’ve slowly built up a pretty decent home kitchen, so now I know what my “core pieces” are. Here is my list:

First Tier: The Stuff You Absolutely Must Have.

(Important note: I cannot stress enough the value of looking for this stuff at estate sales, yard sales, or secondhand stores. While you do have to sift through a lot of garbage, you can find some absolutely amazing vintage stuff that’s better quality at amazing prices. Probably a good 50% of my kitchen stuff is vintage.)

• A decent knife. It needs to be sharp, and it needs to be big enough that you can chop an onion in half without losing a finger.
• A cutting board. Something that you will wash. If you have a dishwasher, get something that you can throw in there. If you hand wash, wood is fine, just make sure to dry it as soon as you wash it.
• A big stainless steel or enameled cast iron Dutch oven. If you only have one pot, this is the pot to have. Something like this:
  It DOES NOT need to be that fancy.  Just make sure that it’s got a nice, heavy bottom, very secure handles that are either welded or riveted on, and is either steel or enameled cast iron. Bare cast iron, like Lodge, is also okay, but it’s a little harder to work with.
• Some wooden spoons and a spatula (pancake turner)
• A big metal bowl
• A slow cooker (Crock pot)
• Freezer bags for food scraps
• Quart-size wide-mouth freezer-proof canning jars and lids
  • Consider getting a few screen lids to convert to sprouting jars as well

That’s literally it, for basic stuff. You can use the dutch oven as a skillet if you really need one–it’s not ideal, but it works–and you can make some pretty decent basic meals with that setup, assuming you have stuff like plates and silverware. You’re going to be a bit limited in what you can make, but it’ll get you started.

 Also nice to have: Ice cube trays that are reserved for food use. You can freeze small amounts of broth, cubes of fresh herbs (chop and add a little water to make a loose paste), or homemade condiments like curry pastes. Once frozen solid, they can be moved to a freezer bag and used whenever you need.